Dagmar of Bohemia

Dagmar of Bohemia
Queen Dagmar, church in Ringsted
Queen consort of Denmark
Tenure	1205–1213
Born	c. 1186 Meissen
Died	24 May 1212 Ribe
Burial	St. Bendt's Church
Spouse	Valdemar II of Denmark
Issue	Valdemar the Young
House	House of Přemysl
Father	Ottokar I of Bohemia
Mother	Adelheid of Meissen
Religion	Roman Catholicism

Dagmar of Bohemia (also known as Margaret of Bohemia; c. 1186 – 24 May 1212 in Ribe) was queen consort of Denmark as the first spouse of King Valdemar II of Denmark. She was the daughter of King Přemysl I Ottokar of Bohemia and his first wife, Adelheid of Meissen.

Margaret (Markéta in Czech) had one brother, Vratislav, and two sisters, Božislava and Hedvika. Her father became the Duke of Bohemia in 1192, but in 1193 was deposed. He then left Bohemia with his family.

Adelheid with her children found a new home at the court of her brother Albert, Margrave of Meissen, and her husband Ottokar became a mercenary for German rulers. In 1197, Ottokar became the Duke of Bohemia for a second time. He repudiated Adelheid and divorced her in 1199 on the grounds of consanguinity. He married Constance of Hungary later the same year. This step, together with other maneuvers, helped him later to obtain the hereditary elevation of his title to king.

Adelheid did not waive her rights. In 1205, she returned to Prague temporarily. At that time, Ottokar decided to marry their daughter, Margaret, to Valdemar II of Denmark. However, Constance gave birth to a son, later King Wenceslaus I of Bohemia the same year. Adelheid left Bohemia soon and died a few years later.

Before his first marriage, Valdemar had been betrothed to Richeza of Bavaria, daughter of the Duke of Saxony. When that engagement fell through, he married Margaret in 1205 in Lübeck. In 1209, the new queen, now known as Dagmar, gave birth to Valdemar the Young.